Guides
Photo booth rental stock log: five entries to fill in per event
A photo booth rental stock log kept per event: the five entries to record, where to keep them and how each one drives reorders, spares and the annual count.
What to take away
- The stock log is the part of stock control that does the work. Five entries per event are enough.
- Log media used per event. It is the only way to know whether your prints-per-event assumption is still true.
- Keep the log with the event record, so the person who has the information fills it in.
- A spare pressed into service is logged the same night, or it is not a spare on Tuesday.
- Reorder from the log at fixed moments, and reconcile once a year in your quietest month.
The five entries to record per event
Record the same five things after every event. A log that asks for little gets filled in, and a log that is filled in is the only record that can tell you what your stock is really doing.
- Prints made, and prints reprinted with the reason.
- Media sets opened, and media remaining after the event.
- Props missing or damaged, by kit.
- Consumables usedtape, cleaning supplies, anything else.
- Any spare pressed into service, so it gets replaced before the next booking.
Item five is the one that catches operators out. A spare lead used on Saturday and not replaced is not a spare on Tuesday, and nobody notices until it is needed.
Per-event stock log
- Prints made, reprints and reason
- Media sets opened, media remaining
- Props missing or damaged, by kit
- Consumables usedtape, cleaning supplies
- Spare pressed into service, to replace
Where the log lives
Keep the log with the event record rather than in a separate stock file. Fill it in as part of the daily operating checklist, so the entry is written by the person who has the information and not reconstructed from memory.
At one or two units, stock control software is not needed. A field on the event record and a printed list in each case is enough, and it is far more likely to be filled in. If you later want reporting, the software and KPI guide covers it.
The three moments when the log is read
The log is read at three fixed moments, and only one of them can still fix a missing prop. The load-out count happens in the room, before the vehicle moves.
Three stock counts
- Load-outin the room, before vehicle moves
- Reorderwhenever you unpack
- Annual reconciliationin your quietest month
At load-out, check props against the photograph and cases against the list taped inside each lid. It takes two minutes, and the missing item is still in the building.
The reorder count happens whenever you unpack: media remaining, spares used, anything damaged. This is where the order gets placed, not where it gets remembered.
The annual reconciliation happens in your quietest month. Everything is physically counted and compared against what you bought and what you believe you hold. It is dull, and it is where you find the stock you have been buying twice.
From log entries to orders
Set a level for each consumable that covers your supplier's lead time plus one busy weekend. Then order when you reach it, not when you run out and not when you happen to think of it.
An emergency order is triggered by one of two entries in the log: stock falling below the reorder point during a run of events, or a spare used and not replaced. Both should be visible from the log rather than discovered in a case.
Qualify a second supplier for anything that stops an event, and test them with a real paid order in your quiet season. Questions worth asking are in the review of fifteen rental suppliers, and the wider inventory and sourcing guide covers how to structure that sourcing.
The stock that is not physical
Templates, fonts and any music or video you supply behave like stock. They expire, and their terms limit what a client may do with them. Put a review date on those terms alongside your physical count.
The U.S. Copyright Office has published a study, Copyright and the Music Marketplace, on the music licensing framework. A license for one purpose does not automatically cover another use, such as a client's social post.
Trained attendant hours are the third kind of stock, and the one you cannot order at short notice. Treat the time it takes to bring someone up to standard as a lead time, in the same way as a supplier's.
Keeping the paperwork behind the count
Keep the documents that sit behind each entry. IRS Publication 583 says that purchases, sales and other transactions generate supporting documents, such as paid bills, invoices and receipts, and those are the papers your log should match.
A stock log tied to invoices does that while telling you your real consumable cost per event. Feed that figure back into pricing, because a corporate activation and a wedding consume very differently.
Then act on what the log shows. Two findings usually appear in the first year: you are holding too much of something that never runs out, and too little of the one thing that stops an event. Both are corrected by moving the reorder points, not by buying more of everything.
How much to hold in the first place is answered in the guide to how much inventory a working operation needs.
Common questions
Do I need stock control software?
At one or two units, no. A field on the event record and a printed list in each case is enough, and it is far more likely to be filled in.
How do I stop props disappearing?
Photograph the kit, count at load-out, and price a small loss rate into the fee. Chasing guests is not practical; noticing on the night is.
What should trigger an emergency order?
Falling below the reorder point during a run of events, or a spare being used and not replaced. Both should be visible from the event log rather than discovered in a case.
How often should I reconcile?
Once a year in full, plus a quick check at the start of your busy season. More often than that and the routine stops being followed.
